By Mark Vester
Tony "The Tiger" Thompson (31-1, 19KOs) will be watching with eager eyes on February 23, when Wladimir Klitschko and Sultan Ibragimov meet in New York's Madison Square Garden to unify the WBO/IBF heavyweight titles.
Thompson, the WBO's mandatory challenger, is due a shot at the title by next June.
Nate Peake, Thompson's manager, told the Washington Post that he's trying to land his fighter an undercard slot on the Klitschko-Ibragimov telecast, which is scheduled to be televised live on HBO. If Thompson is unable to land a position on the show, he will take a tuneup on a local club card to stay active for a 2008 title shot.
Currently on a decent run for an American heavyweight, Thompson has fought and beat a variety of B and C-level heavyweights such as Dominick Guinn, Cliff Couser, Zuri Lawrence, Yanqui Daiz, Vaughn Bean, Timor Ibragimov and Luan Krasniqi (in Hamburg, Germany no less). Thompson now feels that he's ready to step up in class by challenging an A-level heavyweight for the title.
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